A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to apparatuses, systems and methods that are particularly configured to efficiently, safely and quickly install wall and roof panels onto a building. Specifically, the present invention relates to such apparatuses, systems and methods that allow persons to quickly prepare wall and roof panels for use as cladding on a building and to assist with more efficiently and safely installing the wall and roof panels onto the building. More specifically, the present invention relates to such apparatuses, systems and methods that allow the user to combine multiple panels together, position the combined panels onto the frame of the building and quickly, easily and safely attach the combined panels to the frame to form a wall or roof of the building.
B. Background
Metal cladding, which is the exterior wall and roof material installed on pre-engineered metal or steel buildings, is generally grouped into three categories, namely, exposed fastener panels, concealed fastener panels and standing seam. Metal cladding is typically machine formed through the use of roll-formers, sheet metal brakes or sheet metal folders from large coils of pre-coated sheet metal, typically ranging in thicknesses of 18 to 29 gauge, to construct the finished or installed shape of the metal panels, which typically range in width between two and four feet and may be of a wide rage of widths, with some panels be as long as forty feet or more. The typical, mechanical manufacturing method, which has been in use for several decades, produces a somewhat standardized appearance and profile for the metal panels. As a result, there are several primary styles of panels that are sold by the core group of metal building manufacturers in the United States and globally. While metal panels may have different profiles, nearly all of the different styles of panels are corrugated, meaning they comprise a series of ribs and valleys between the ribs, and they are specifically configured to provide the structural integrity that is necessary to resist the loads which are imposed on the building, weatherproof the building envelope and provide an aesthetic appeal for the building. Each metal panel and its associated corrugations from the forming process for a particular style of panel are designed to overlap and interlock or “corrugate” with each other to provide a continuous, repeatable and predictable pattern on the surface of the wall or roof.
The typical method that is utilized to install exterior metal cladding on a building is generally accomplished with a crew of three to five workers who install the metal panels from a position on the ground. The panels are received at the job site in stored bundles that usually comprise thirty to forty panels per bundle, with the panels in the bundle being pre-drilled for installation on a building. A metal panel is removed from the bundle of panels and carried by hand to the leading edge of the wall or roof structure. The metal panel is then lifted into place against the superstructure or frame of the building using a tethered clamp or by lifting the panels progressively vertical at an interval that is determined by the width of a single manufactured metal panel. After positioning the wall or roof panel on the frame, the user checks the panel for vertical and/or horizontal alignment, measures the panel for squareness and then secures the panel to the building's frame using screws or other mechanical fasteners that connect the wall or roof panels to the building's frame. The cladding for a building typically comprises the manufactured metal panels being installed over a thermal blanket insulation with laminated scrim or vinyl facing, or with a variety of other materials, such as gypsum wall board, exterior sheathing or the like.
As well known to persons skilled in the relevant art, the standard metal building superstructure frame is composed of a plurality of rigid frame members, typically referenced as posts for the walls and beams for the roof, with a plurality of horizontal girts spanning from between rigid frame members (posts) for the walls and a plurality of horizontal purlins spanning from between rigid frame members (beams) for the roof. For installation of wall panels, the metal panels are typically attached to the girts by installing a screw or other connector, as may be required or recommended by the manufacturer of the panel, through the panel into a girt. For installation of the roof panels, the metal panels are typically attached to the purlins by installing a screw or other connector, as may be required or recommended by the manufacturer of the panel, through the panel into a purlin.
As well known by persons who are skilled in the relevant art, the present apparatuses, systems and methods of installing panels, particularly metal panels on the superstructure/frame of a metal framed building, is known to be time consuming and inherently subject to errors with regard to the proper positioning and alignment of the panels. In particular, if the panels are not carefully positioned against the frame, the finished wall of panels can lack uniformity with regard to overhang distances and not have the desired squareness, which can result in saw-tooth panel edges on the squarely framed superstructure. In addition, the resulting wall or roof can have openings in the panels where apertures in a panel were not aligned with the metal girt or purlin to which the panel is attached.
Based on the consistency of the general configuration of the metal panels, from one style of panel to another, various types of tools, equipment, systems and methods have been developed to assist the workers with handling and installing the metal cladding on the frame of a building. Despite the existing apparatuses, systems and methods, what is needed is an improved apparatus, system and method for handling and installing panels on the frame of a building. More specifically what is needed is an improved apparatus, system and method for combining a plurality of separate wall or roof panels into a group of such panels, a process commonly referred to as “panelizing”, and for installing the panelized panels on the frame of a building, or more specifically on the girts or purlins (which are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “building's frame” or “frame”). An improved apparatus, system and method should be configured to allow the user to quickly, easily and efficiently panelize a plurality of panels so the panelized panels can be installed, in a predictable manner, on the building's frame. To accomplish this, the improved apparatus, system and method should be configured to ensure the panelized panels are put together in a substantially true, flat and level plane so the panels can be properly placed against a wall or roof portion of the frame. The new apparatus, system and method should be configured to improve accuracy with regard to maintaining squareness and overhang distances of the panels so as to eliminate the possibility of saw-tooth panel edges on a squarely framed building frame and holes in the finished wall or roof. Preferably, the new apparatus, system and method should be easy to use and relatively inexpensive to manufacture.